Smartphones to Overtake PCs in LTE Subscriptions by 2014

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – As operators worldwide have begun launching LTE networks, the availability of LTE devices has skyrocketed to over 200, more than a tenfold increase since the end of 2010. While PCs account for the majority of subscriptions currently, smartphones are expected to become the largest segment by 2014, according to a new video based on the report LTE Devices and Applications: Next-generation mobile networks driven by video service by Jan ten Sythoff, Pyramid Research Analyst at Large.

“The majority of products are currently aimed at PCs, with three out of five devices models being discrete modems, either routers or PC add-on devices,” he says. However, Verizon’s Innovation Lab has been an important driver of machine (module) devices for LTE, providing technical resources to smaller companies looking to integrate LTE capabilities into a variety of different devices. The number of LTE modules has increased from none at the end of 2010 to 30 in October 2011. Typically LTE smartphones are on the Android platform with larger screens, front-facing cameras, and have broad video connectivity capabilities. “In 2016, 57.3 percent of LTE subscriptions are expected to be smartphones, 33.4 percent PCs, 7.6 percent tablets and the remainder machine-to-machine devices,” he adds.